SPECTRAL REGULARITY AS A FACTOR DISTINCT FROM HARMONIC RELATIONS IN AUDITORY GROUPING

When the regular spectral pattern formed by an odd-harmonic complex (t he base) is disrupted by an added even harmonic, the added component i s judged as more salient than its neighbors. This study considered whe ther the effects of spectral pattern on perceptual segregation are res tricted to harmonic stimuli. Participants either rated the clarity or judged the relative pitch of a cued component ins series of complex to nes. The difference in clarity between added and base components found for the harmonic complexes was not reduced when the complexes were ma de inharmonic either by a frequency shift or by spectral stretch or co mpression. However, the added-base difference could be abolished for a n inharmonic complex when the distribution of components across freque ncy was made uniform. These findings suggest that spectral regularity is a factor distinct from harmonic relations in auditory grouping.